


When This Blows Over

by Madame_Tentacle



Category: Outlast (Video Games)
Genre: Blood, Gen, Gore, Violence, you could just call it Jeremy's dlc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-09
Updated: 2017-08-03
Packaged: 2018-10-29 20:19:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10861359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Madame_Tentacle/pseuds/Madame_Tentacle
Summary: The variants are loose, the doctors are dead, and I have no one but myself to count on to clean up this mess.





	1. Chapter 1

Thank fuck the alarms died down after a few minutes. Would have blown my hearing out out if they lasted much longer. I’ll definitely need to have a word with the technical department when this all blows over. I know it’s an emergency evacuation, but I think the blaring red lights are enough to get the point across. Adding noise into the mix just makes everyone panic and forget what ‘a calm and orderly fashion’ means. 

I hoped for a moment’s peace when the alarms shut off, but everyone’s shouting and screaming is even worse, and if I don’t think fast, they’re going to come crying to me.

The keypad and the lock should be enough to to keep the employees and interns out, but the variants are much stronger than our security measures. They’re more like creatures than men at this point--stupid, but beyond stubborn.

Now I’m not a cowardly man. You can’t be when you work with Murkoff, but I’ll admit I couldn’t think straight until I barricaded myself with a couple overstuffed file cabinets. Only the, could I get my thoughts past the screaming.

When I was safe, I fell into my chair and took a deep breath. Nothing would get past my barricade, but I wasn’t too keen on staying in here. I had to take care of this mess. If I didn’t, no one else would, but the damn variants were getting louder and who knows what the hell Hope was doing with Project Walrider.

Then, I felt a blast of cold air blow through my hair. I looked up at the vent and saw my ticket out of here. Better yet, my desk was high enough for me to reach it. Only thing is the screws held tight and there was a pounding at the door. Not that they would break through, but it did mean I couldn’t go outside to find a screwdriver, so it was time to improvise.

I dug into my pocket for a quarter I found on the ground earlier that day. It fit perfectly inside the grooves of the screws and I could take my sweet time unscrewing the cover.

When it was free, I tossed it aside and hoisted myself through.

The screaming was even louder in the vents, echoing off the metal and droning in my ears. It was almost as bad as the stench trapped inside the narrow tunnel. Like rotting meat and a strange, coppery stench. Bitter enough to make my eyes water, but I pressed forward. There was an opening right by the office entrance that I could take advantage of.

Beneath it lied two doctors, my assistant, a couple interns, and a single guard--all dead and useless to me now. They weren’t a match for the variants. Bashed in their skulls, tore them limb from limb, and left their bloated corpses to soak in their own blood. The mad men cut no corners when it came to their vengeance, but they hadn’t the sense to loot the bodies.

I was about to drop through the opening when I heard a whistle. It was faint at first, almost too low to hear, but became louder and higher with each passing second. When it was at its loudest, a black fog rolled through the hall, past the door and the bodies. Those nanites were like like gnats swarming in my ears. I heard nothing but static and my vision was fuzzy. It passed quickly, but even so my head continued to throb.

Damn that Wernicke.

You think after 66 years of working on this monstrosity, he would have found a way to stop it from affecting the right of mind. He must be getting lazy in his old age.

If only we could get him to retire. I could think of a dozen up-and-coming researchers that Murkoff would be happy to donate to the cause, could make better use of the project than the useless, old bat. It was probably his sloppiness that caused everything to go downhill in the first place. He gave Billy too much freedom to do what he wanted and fuck us all over, but I can’t think of that right now. If I want this taken care of right, I have to do it myself.

I gave myself a moment to fight the headache, then dropped through the opening. I sidestepped past the employees to reach the guard. He was slumped against the wall, jaw pried open, and a damn bloody mess, but none of it mattered as much as the baton he kept a hold on.

I knelt down and grabbed for it, but the bastard held tight. Don’t know what he still needed it for. I had better uses for it than him.

I glanced down the halls, hoping for another guard, but they made it further than this one, and I wasn’t taking another step without a way to defend myself against these crazies.

Once again, I tried to take the baton, this time giving it a good yank. He still held tight, but the pull was enough to break his wrist.

I worried a moment there. I didn’t think the snapping bone would make such a racket, and I didn’t know who or what was listening. I waited a moment, but no one came. Luckily, the variants were busy making their rounds on the medical team, giving me the time I needed to get myself that weapon.

When I looked at the twisted wrist, it gave me an idea. 

If he wouldn’t let go, then I would have to make it where he couldn’t hold on. 

I started with his index finger. I bent it back until it snapped the same as the wrist. The bone broke through the skin. It surprised me, but not enough to keep me from going to the middle finger, the ring finger, and finally the pinky so he dropped the baton.

Almost more trouble than it was worth.

The baton weighed more than I expected, but when I gave it a swing, I found it no harder than swinging a golf club, only this was far more convenient, slim enough to even hide up my sleeve if I wanted the element of surprise. 

I did just that and looked at my hands in disgust. I tried to be as efficient as possible, but blood still splattered my hands. You never know what kind of diseases the dead carry on them.

I considered looking for a disinfectant dispenser, when I heard voices on the other side of the door I was near. Not the raving of madmen, but voices as sane and controlled as my own.

“We get out of here through reception and let Murk Tactical clean it up.”

“If they get here in time. We need help now. If we get them on the radio, the National Guard could be here within-”

“We don’t even know if the radio works.”

“It’s short wave. If the prison’s got electricity they’ve got signal, and the lights are on.”

“Murkoff has it under control.”

“Yeah, I noticed. We need to get to that radio.”

Of course, the radio. Keeping the truth inside was my first priority. What was the use in survival if it meant jail time?

I had to get to the tower. I had to keep it contained. Even if I had to do it all by myself, I was going to take care of this. 

Who knows? I may even get a hefty bonus from all this.


	2. Chapter 2

Getting through the labs was easy enough when the variants hated the doctors more than me.

It was when I looked outside that I found cause for concern. Out there, there weren’t as many places to hide, not enough shadows to walk along, but I would have to take those risks if I wanted to get to that radio.

I took my first step from the asylum and took in a deep breath of that good mountain air. I savored the cleanness, the crispness of it. After wandering so long in the stench of blood and shit, this fresh air was as good as a cold, tall one after a long work week. 

I would have enjoyed my time out here if the fog weren’t so damn thick. I tried to survey the area, but I could barely see a few feet in front of me.

Nonetheless, I continued forward, slow and steady. It drove me crazy taking so long to go so little distance, but it was a sacrifice I had to make to keep from making a sound. 

I heard shouts and screams from every which way. With enough effort, I could track any one of them, but none were near enough to be of any concern to me. I had to keep my head about me and be patient. That’s how I would get to the radio.

Then I heard voices too close for comfort.

“I heard something.”

“As did I.”

“Should we investigate?”

“Perhaps it is only an animal.”

“Perhaps it is something more.”

“What shall we do if it is?”

“I shall tell you when we find it.”

The low voices came from either side of me. They talked clearly enough to pass for sane, but there was something wrong about their hivemind way of speaking. I’d rather go back to the lunatics that just screamed in my face. At least with them, I could understand their intentions.

These two were in a whole new category. Too detached from reality to call normal, but left with too much reason to be completely mad.

My gut told me to turn around and run as fast as I could back inside. There, I could see where I was going, if nothing else, but I knew running would make enough noise for these voices to find me and do God knows what.

Instead, I only took a couple steps back. I remembered a bush I passed just a moment ago that should be tall enough to make a sufficient hiding place. 

Making as little noise as possible, I managed to find the bush again and crouch behind it.

It was more than tall and wide enough to hide me from anyone passing by, but a set of footsteps came closer.

I tightened my grip on the baton. I didn’t want to make noise with confrontation, but if I had to, I would be ready. I peeked from my hiding spot to see what I was up against, and I would have cursed out loud if my life didn’t depend on staying quiet.

My pursuer was close enough for me to make out vague features, and he looked more like a neanderthal than a man. He was tall enough to tower over the other variants and about twice the size. Misshapen and hulking, but more muscle than fat. If that wasn’t bad enough, he carried a club that was the perfect size for bludgeoning, but that wasn’t even the worst of it.

No, the worst was the fact he didn’t wear a stitch of clothing. I didn’t need to go on wondering why the hell he deemed it appropriate to ditch his pants.

I ducked back behind the bush and looked over my shoulder. I hoped to find another spot to hide, but if there were any, the fog hid them from me.

The footsteps were coming closer and I could hear a low breathing.

Maybe he would pass right by my hiding spot, but I needed better than maybe. If it was just him, I could surprise him with an attack to dizzy him, and make a run for it, but I could very well just bump into the second man out there to ambush me after landing the hit.

I gave my spot a second look over and that’s when I saw a rock at my feet. It was about the size of a baseball and fit in my hand perfectly when I picked it up.

I threw the rock over the bush, as far as I could. I don’t know where it landed, but I heard it plop on the grass with a “thump”, as if someone had fallen.

I held my breath and waited.

The footsteps stopped for a moment, then started up again. Only now instead of coming closer, they became quieter with each step, until there was silence.

Finally I stood, and walked from the church. 

I no longer heard those low voices, but I still kept a snail’s pace. It was frustrating, but I made it to the radio tower in one piece without much trouble. I suppose that was worth the delay of safety.

When I was inside again, that stench of death hit me like a punch in the gut, but I was still glad to be back. Here, the sounds echoed off the walls, and I had plenty of lockers to hide in. I closed and locked the door behind me, and started down the hall, feeling myself again, until I heard a peculiar sound.

It wasn’t footsteps, or even screaming. It was the clanking of chains. They scraped along the floor, and for a moment those chains were all I heard.

When that moment passed is when I heard the familiar screaming.

A variant ran towards, but not to charge for an attack. Rather, he ran away in fear, screaming at the top of his lungs.

His hysteria was my cue to wait it out in a locker.

The variant ran as fast as he could, but the chains were getting louder until I could see what caused the sound.

It was Chris fucking Walker.

The restraints and tranquilizers we used up on him blew through our budgets. I had hoped his chains and high security cell would keep him from running amok, but the Haloperidol must have worn off enough for him to break out.

I expected him to chase the variant down the hall, and out of the tower so I could be on my way, but not even half way through, Walker caught up.

The variant pleaded for his life, but he was cut off when Walker grabbed him by the neck. He lifted the man high enough for his legs to dangle. 

The variant thrashed and fought as best he could. His struggles landed a few kicks on Walker’s gut, but the giant didn’t so much as budge. Only muttered something about containment before pulling the variant’s head clean off.

It was that easy.

Walker didn’t so much as blink. Not when the man let out his dying scream. Not when the man’s blood poured down his swollen arm. Not even when the corpse fell at his feet. He only tossed the head aside like garbage, before walking off.

It was safe to come out of the locker now, but I waited in there a moment to compose myself. If anything was going to kill me in this place, it would be Walker. He was a dumb brute, I could not underestimate him. Not like the others when I could stand a chance in a fight. All I could hope from landing a hit on Walker is pissing him off.

God, I wish I could just wait out these riots in this locker, but the radio was too close to give up now. I reminded myself that Walker went the opposite direction and forced myself from my hiding spot.

The remains of Walker’s exploits littered the hall where I had to watch my step to avoid stepping in the viscera. It was a grisly sight, but the massacre gave me a clean path to the radio. I enjoyed the peace and quiet, but my good mood vanished once the radio was in my sight.

One of those crazies beat me to it. 

No, it wasn’t just any maniac. As I peeked through the doorframe, I saw the intruder was Waylon Park.

You think he would have learned his lesson from last time he tried to interfere, but there he was, ready to tell the world our secret. Committing him was too kind a fate. I should have killed him on the spot and made it look like an accident. I was soft, but that wrong would be righted now.

Before Park could say a word into that radio, I rushed in and wrestled the radio out of his grasp. He hardly put up a fight, and I tossed him out of the way easily.

I smashed the radio to pieces, even when I knew it was in excess. I couldn’t risk anyone putting it back together, finding anything to salvage. 

Park must have thought me easily distracted because he tried to sneak away, but I knew better than to give him that leeway. Leaving him alive was just as risky as leaving that radio intact.

Before he could get away, I stunned him with the baton and pinned him to the ground, pressing the weapon into his neck.

“Waylon Park. You couldn’t just…”

I pressed the baton harder yet. I could feel Park’s struggles weaken and his breath escape him. Just a little longer and he would be gone for good. Just a little longer.

“You couldn’t just keep your mouth shut. You couldn’t just play along. But you’re done talking now.”

It was almost pitiful how little of a fight Park put up. If I didn’t know better, I would think he had nothing to fight for, but I knew he thought of his little wife and kids. He never shut up about them in the break room. Only time I ever saw him smile now that I think about it. I could only imagine the shame he felt not being able to fight for them, but that’s what he gets for meddling. 

It should have been done then and there, but then there was a pounding at the door. Not the usual variants using themselves as a battering ram against the lock, but something stronger. It sounded more like a beast than a man, like it could rip the door from the hinges if it wanted to.

I swear I heard those chains. 

I knew I should have at least waited until Park was unconscious, but facing against Walker wasn’t a risk I could afford to take. I was sure I wouldn’t forgive myself, but I stood up and started out of there.

“Do me a favor and die here, Park.”

I didn’t look back once after I abandoned Park. I didn’t even focus on getting out, only the hell away from there. 

By the time I was able to think clearly again, I realized I was headed towards the male ward. Good, at least there was an easy way to the exit through there.


	3. Chapter 3

I never realized how maddening the layout of this place was until now. It’s been an hour and I have yet to find a way out of here. The one exit I did find was blocked from the other side.

Damn whoever thought that was a good idea.

They better hope I never find them, or getting fired will be the least of their worries.

I stopped walking and took a deep breath to calm myself. I didn’t have the luxury to get angry. Not yet. I had to keep my focus on surviving through the night. I just had to hold on until Tactical got here, then I could go home and drink this all away.

But they weren’t here yet. I had to carry on whether I liked it or not.

With my priorities back in order, I pressed forward. 

The male ward was mostly quiet, aside from a few patients too broken to notice me. I should have enjoyed the break, but it was all too easy. There was always a catch. Always.

“Hey, there’s one!”

I looked over my shoulder at a couple variants standing at the end of the hall. Though I would have preferred there to be only one, I was glad they were of a reasonable enough size for me to put up a fight if need be.

Still, I chose to run. Only this time, I knew it was for convenience, rather than cowardice. I kept an eye out for open doors and dove into the first one I could find. I slammed the door behind me. I searched for a lock, but I was forced to settle on using the bed as a barricade. 

It would hold well enough, but there was a second door I had to worry about. I slammed it shut and searched for something to keep it closed, but there was nothing, and the pounding was coming from both doors. 

I didn’t worry about the barricaded entrance. I held my baton and kept my eyes on the unprotected entrance. It wasn’t long until the door fell from its hinges at the variant’s efforts, but before he could attack, I landed a hit on the side of his head. It should have been enough for him to lose consciousness, but when it came to these mutants, it was only enough to stun and dizzy him for a few moments, but it was long enough for me to shove him aside and make a run past him, down the hall.

For a time, it was enough to run them in circles. I hoped for them to lose interest, but a dead end put a kink in my plan. Then came the pounding at the door.

I first looked up for a vent, but there was only a dumb waiter in the room. It was just big enough for me to squeeze into and it would have to do for my escape. I pressed the button and the small gate opened. I went into it and pressed the button to take me up. 

The gate closed me in, as the variants knocked the door down, and the waiter took me away, but I didn’t relax yet.

While the waiter gave me an escape, it could very well bring me into another danger. I kept my guard and hold on the baton, but when the waiter made its stop, I saw nothing out of the ordinary. Only a wide, open room.

Nothing I could see was a cause for concern, but when I stepped out of the waiter, groans and screams echoed from the halls. Not the enraged or hysterical cries I’ve heard all night, but something pathetic and desperate.

I kept hold of my weapon. I braced myself for an ambush as I started down the hall, but all I found were mangled men strapped to beds. They looked even worse than the variants and they pleaded for death that I didn’t have the time to give them. I would have passed them by completely if I didn’t recognize one of the voices.

“B-Blaire...is that you?”

I stopped to stare at one of the men on the beds. He looked more like a corpse than a man, but I knew the voice belonged to one of the men from the business department. I should have ignored him, but seeing a fellow executive in such a sorry state was worth investigating if just to avoid ending up in his place.

“Gary? Who the hell did this to you?”

“Not...not a patient. An e...executive...like...us…”

I stepped back. I knew the engine could get into the heads of the employees. Even I suffered a migraine or two on its account, but I had never seen an employee suffer anything worse than a night terror and some mad ramblings. None of them ever hurt anyone except…

Shit.

I should have taken my chance with the variants downstairs. Hell, I’d rather navigate around Walker again than risk another minute here.

I became careless. I walked too fast. I forgot to look over my shoulder, and it left me wide open for an attack from the shadows.

I was then face to face with a haggard old man. He looked like someone skinned him alive, chewed him up, then spit him back out. He’d probably be dead where he stood if not for the drip in his arm   
pumping god knows what in him to keep him alive. He looked like nothing but skin and bones, but still had the strength to deliver a powerful blow to my stomach with the bone shears he carried.

I clutched to my wound and found blood on palm. I stumbled backwards, and waited for it to end there, when the asshole spoke to me.

“Jer?”

The last I saw of Rick was when they wheeled him away to the engine. I could still hear him pleading for me to stop it, as if I had another choice.

“Rick?”

The remains of what used to be the head of business development threw its head back and laughed.

“Well, you really are a sight for sore eyes, buddy!” He held out his hand to help me up and for some reason, I accepted the help.

“What the fuck is going on here?” I asked when I stood. My gut was hurting like a bitch, but I wouldn’t let him know it.

“You can’t tell? It’s the new business model!” He motioned to the carnage and viscera like it was another one of his loaded charts. God, did he know how to ramble at those meetings. Always went over time.

The memory made me groan and rub my temple. I really didn’t have the time for this, but I would rather he talk my ear off than use those scissors again. At least until I figured out my next plan of action.

“Sure thing, but you’re going to want to take a seat for this one!” He took a wheelchair by one of the gurneys and offered it to me.

I’ll admit it was nice to sit down, if just for a chance to recover from my new wound, and if I could just keep Rick talk, he’d be too caught up in the sound of his own voice to hurt me again.

When I took my seat, Rick came behind and pushed me around like I was some invalid. It was humiliating, but my gut hurt too much to argue.

“So you know this whole Walrider business, right?”

“Of course I do. That’s the whole reason we’re here.”

“Well you remember the Crypt Keeper’s memo last month, right?”

I chuckled at the nickname for old Wernicke. “God he made us sit through a whole meeting just to make sure we don’t worship the damn thing. Lasted a whole fucking hour.”

“But do you know why we had to sit through that?”

“Because some of our interns were stupid enough to believe the patient delusions. Everyone knows this.”

“That’s what I thought too, but there’s more to it.”

“Oh?”

“This Walrider bullshit is a bigger moneymaker than we thought possible, and I think Wernicke wanted that little secret all to himself.”

“And what secret is that?”

“That letting this thing be worshiped is actually a recipe for instant profit!”

“God, Rick. Don’t tell me you’re a born again through the Walrider now.”

Rick laughed. “Aw, Jer. What kind of moron do you take me for? You and I both know that thing is just science gone too far! I’m just saying that letting others worship the thing can help our cause here.”

I guess this was a collaborative project now.

“You still haven’t said how this benefits us.”

“C’mon, Jer! You gotta get creative here! Do you never see the collection tray passed around at Sunday service? Those zealots are loaded!”

“God, I don’t even remember the last time I went to church, but I think I get your point. You’re looking to exploit a new religion?” I hate to admit, but he was almost onto something.here. Maybe if the engine didn’t fry his brain, I could have taken him seriously.

“Now you’re up to speed! Look at what it’s done already!” He stopped the wheelchair in the doorway of another room of mutilated men. If nothing else, he was certainly thorough. “Do you think I could have gotten all these test subjects without Wernicke’s project floating around? I tell you, buddy, the Walrider is just the start! Now that I’m getting the hang of this whole doctor thing, I think I’m really close to a breakthrough! Wernicke better watch out! I might knock him off his throne real soon!”

The only impressive thing about Rick’s new hobby was how many of his “patients” survived. Maybe he could have been a miracle worker with a PHD.

I laughed just to humor the poor devil. “You really are diligent as always, Rick. I’ll give you that.”

“Aw, you’re making me blush!”

“Heh, that’s what friends are for, right?”

“You know, I used to think about that a lot.” Rick’s voice was almost somber.

“What do you mean?”

“Back when I was first put in the engine.”

My heart stopped.

“I just about hated you back then. I think for about a week, I wanted you dead, but now I think I owe you one.”

What the hell.

“I wouldn’t have made all these breakthroughs if not for you! You really do learn a lot in there! Got me out of a rut and helped me find my dream job! And the best part? No more Monday Morning   
meetings!”

God. We really shouldn't have put him in the engine during his mid life crisis, but there was no choice. It was better he go mad in here than try to present his model to the rest of the world. 

At least he was too long gone to hate me.

My wound was still hurting me, but I forced myself from the wheelchair then. I best end this on a good note while I still can.

“Well, Rick, catching up has been great and all, but I have work to attend to. You know how it is around here.”

“Do I ever! You always were a nose to the grindstone kind of guy, but I get it. You got your projects. I got mine.”

“I’m glad you understand.” I kept my voice even through the pain, but Rick still saw me wince.

“Hold up there! You want me to get you something for that cut? I think I got you pretty good there.”

“I’ll be fine.” I took a step back. “It hurts like hell, but I don’t think it’s deep enough to bleed me dry.”

Rick shrugged. “If you say so, but if you need anything you know where to find me!”

“Thanks.”

I started for the quickest way out, but found the doors barricaded.

“What the hell?” I looked to Rick for an explanation.

“Oh, you’re going to want to leave those there.”

“But the fastest way out is through here.”

“Just use the elevator if you want to get out.”

“I’ve already been going in circles long enough. You can put your barricades up when I leave for all I care.”

“Hey, no need to get testy with me! I’m just saying if you go that way, you have a good chance of a run in with the man downstairs.”

“Specifics, please.”

“Gluskin.”

I recalled the crime scene photos of his handiwork before his arrest. God knows what he was up to now.

“Thank you, Rick.”

This time I meant it.


	4. Chapter 4

I avoided Gluskin thanks to Rick, but any graciousness I had faded with each step I took.

The cut he left me with drained enough blood to exhaust me, and every breath hurt like a bitch

Why couldn’t he have waited until after this shitstorm to get even with me? He must have known it was me before he attacked. No one could be that long gone, but the bastard did it anyways. I’d have understood if he wanted me to die here, but why not just let me walk right into Gluskin’s territory? Or tear me apart right then and there like the other executives?

Oh, God. It hurt too much to make sense of Rick’s bullshit. He was enough of a headache when he was sane.

I shook him from my thoughts and held up my hand that held the wound as I walked. It was covered in red.

Though the exit was within my reach, I couldn’t ignore this any longer.

I spotted a bathroom door, and stumbled in. There was enough blood on the tile to make me slip, but I caught the sink to steady myself. 

For the first time since this all started, I looked at myself in the mirror. 

Pale skin, glazed over eyes, sweat matting my hair to my forehead. I almost looked as bad as the variants.

Then all the blood on this shirt. A shame since I just got this one, but it reminded me of the situation at hand. As much as I wanted out of this hellhole, it would be for nothing if I died of blood loss as I walked out the door.

I was just glad this was a hospital and we had first aid kits all over the place. There was a container on the wall that I broke into for everything I needed to patch myself up. I then ran the water in the sink.

I half expected blood to flow through it, but thankfully it ran clear, cold water.

As I wiped away the blood, I found the cut much smaller than I expected. Just a narrow slash about as long as my index finger. I would have thought Rick gutted me alive with all the blood that came from the little thing. Still, one cut was all it took to hit something important, or cause an infection. Probably tetanus with the condition of those shears…

With the wound cleaned as best as I could with sink water and paper towels, I gritted my teeth for the disinfectant. My eyes watered as I stopped myself from crying out in pain with how much it stung. Getting stabbed again would have been easier to deal with, but I couldn’t risk making a sound when God knows what could be just outside the door. Instead I reminded myself that enduring this would be worth it when I got out of here.

It had to be.

Finally, I was able to apply the bandages and let the pain subside. It felt good to relax for a moment, but the relief was short lived as I watched the blood stain the bandages. Though the flow had slowed considerably, I would have worried if the exit weren’t so close I could taste it.

I splashed a bit of cold water on my face to wake myself up, straightened my hair out, and cracked the door open to peek outside.

Not a soul to be seen.

I made sure the door closed quietly behind me, then tip toed down the hallway, into the entrance lobby.

Through the blood, the carnage, the delusions scrawled in blood on the walls, I found relief at last. None of this was my problem anymore. All I had to do was walk out the door and one of Murk Tactical would get me to a hospital. 

When the doctors asked what happened, I just had to spin up some bullshit story. Some lunatic robbed me at knifepoint after a long night at the bar. It happened all the time to dumbasses who stayed out too late.

No one would know the truth.

I reached for the door handle, but it wouldn’t budge.

God dammit.

I should have known there was a catch. There was always a catch in this place.

No...it wasn’t that hard. I just had to breathe and think for a moment. For all this place’s horrors, it was the product of madness and savages. 

I had my mind with me. I had the upper hand.

Though breathing hurt now, I managed a deep inhale and remembered the control room. It was just down the next hall, third door to the left. I could unlock the doors from there. I had the keycard, the passwords, everything.

I tightened my grip on the baton, and started on my way, but a variant’s body at my feet made me stumble slightly. I was about to kick it, when I noticed a glimmer, just out of his reach.

A kitchen knife. Nothing too spectacular, but sharp enough to cut the skin.

I glanced at my baton. It served me well to get me this far, but that was when I had the strength to make it so. A sharpened edge could make up for the shortcomings my wound gave me.

I shook my head. I was getting distracted from escape. I was mere minutes away from freedom. I just had to keep moving forward. It didn’t matter what weapon I had at this point. All of the variants were deeper into the asylum now. I was good as free. 

Then I remembered that it was in a moment of carelessness that Rick cut me open. 

I slipped the baton up my sleeve and snagged the knife, holding it before me as I started down the hall.

I checked over my shoulder at least a dozen times as I walked, but there was nothing out of the ordinary. Not with the first door, neither the second. 

I paused for just a moment to dig the keycard from my pocket for the third door, but I found it wasn’t necessary.

Someone or something had knocked the door from its hinges from the outside, so it lied on the floor inside the room.

My heart skipped a beat. I waited for one of the variants to lunge towards me and rip my throat off, but there was only the buzz of the monitors and a few quiet beeps. 

I shook my head and stepped inside. Taking a seat at the keyboard, I started fiddling with the keys, when my eyes wandered to the monitors. It was just for a moment, but I saw a familiar face on one of them.

Waylon Park.

Looking like a lost child, he continued to roam those halls. I didn’t think it possible. I told myself I mistook an ordinary variant for Park, but then I saw that damned camera in his hand.

He was just so set on destroying everything we worked for and for what?

Even if he became a huge fucking hero and got all the praise, Murkoff would eliminate him. It wasn’t worth a few minutes of glory. He should have kept his mouth shut. He could have just gone home to his family and forget everything here like all the others. He just had to make things difficult, had to make me take care of it all myself, clean up his messes…

Still, I kept my cool. I was losing strength, and Park was still far from the exit. I may be able to watch him die without lifting a finger.

I leaned back in the chair and followed him on the monitors. Though there were several that would fade into static, and sometimes black, none of the ones with Park failed me. 

As I watched, I noticed he limped as he walked. I couldn’t fight the grin. He might as well just give up right then and there. With Gluskin on his tail, he didn’t stand a chance, but no matter what, he didn’t stop trying to go forward.

Worst of all, his tries were successful. 

Every damn one.

He escaped the groom’s territory in one piece, and then I recognized the hall that he hobbled down.

It led straight to the lobby.

Fuck.

I had to do it myself. Not even the Tactical team spotted him as he went by. 

What were we even paying them for? They were told to shoot on sight. Why didn’t one of them see Park? Why didn’t they empty their bullets on him and smash that camera to bits? Wasn’t it enough that I survived this hell all by myself? Why did I have to be the one to kill the whistleblower with my own hands?

If nothing else, my rage distracted from the pain. I punched in the last code to open the door and stormed down the hall--carefulness be damned.

I made it back to the entrance, and shoved open the front door

In poured the morning light. I might have found it comforting if I didn’t have to worry about Park. Hell, it’d be the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen once I ended this.

I turned my back on the sun, and leaned against the frame, sinking to the floor. 

Park would round that corner any moment. I couldn’t let him think I was a threat. He’d gotten too far to underestimate at this point.

Once he entered the lobby, I was clutching my wound, and no longer bothered to hide the pain. 

“Mr. Park. How the fuck are you still alive,” I groaned. “Let’s...make a deal. You help me, I’ll help you.”

I couldn't read Park's expression as he stared at me.

“God, I’m stuck like a pig…” I clutched my wound tighter. “Help me up...please…”

He came towards me, but he looked only at the exit, rather than me. Not that it mattered, he was close enough for me to reach, and as he walked by me, I used what little strength I had to stand and land the knife in his stomach.

“No one can know!”

He was down now, gasping for breath, trying to stop the breath. Just one more hit for good measure. One more and it would all be over.

“No one can-”

Before I could finish him off, I heard that low hum.

It came at me before I could even think about running, lifted me into the air, surrounded me with that black swarm until it was all I saw.

The static was so loud I couldn’t hear my own screaming. It buzzed in my ears, scratched at my bones.

I felt my insides twist and turn. Like something dug its way through me, but I couldn’t even flail against its grip on me.

Even my scream cut short when some liquid gushed from my mouth, my ears, my nose, even from my eyes.

I no longer saw black. Only red.


End file.
